Memento
by Jace of Spades
Summary: "JAMES IS LEAVING AND I CAN'T GO!" Various one-shots that look into the life of one James Sirius Potter as he goes off to Hogwarts and grows up.


Well. Here it is. A likely generic beginning to the next generation.

Almost everything is canon. I do try really hard to keep to the books. The one notable thing at this point I've changed is that I have Neville and Luna together. Sorrynotsorry. They're too cute to not.

The bulk of these stories will be James-centric, and will include looks into various family members and friends.

Even though this will have multiple chapters, I'm approaching each chapter as a story in itself, giving the readers background to James and seeing various moments throughout his first through sixth years. It won't be very long, just enough to prelude a multi-chapter fic that takes place during his seventh year.

Welcome to James's years at Hogwarts. Get ready for friendship, betrayal, love, hate, allies, enemies, and a whole lot of Quidditch!

* * *

It was dark out. Only a single light from a lamp post stood, a beacon in the blackness that surrounded Godric's Hollow. A solitary wind bustled the trees, leaves crinkling in protest as the branches rustled – and then all was still again, as if nothing had happened in the first place.

Suddenly another source of light peaked over the horizon, a stark red tainting the dark sky. The red faded to orange, and then to a brilliant yellow as more light grazed across the earth.

The lamp post shut off, its job done for the night.

Not long after the sunrise, there was movement disrupting the still quiet of the neighborhood. It didn't take long before chaos ensued.

One dark-haired boy was rudely woken by a shrill cry coming from somewhere else inside the particular house. He desperately tried to cover his ears with a scarlet pillow, wishing the noise away so that he could sleep for a little longer. Unfortunately, the smaller, red-headed girl had other plans for him.

"JAMES IS LEAVING AND I CAN'T GO!" The wail echoed throughout the house, waking anyone who had been asleep – and likely waking some of the neighbors as well. The male in question groaned, rolling over in his bed and attempting to burrow deeper into his mattress as he tried to block out his obnoxious little sister. Didn't she understand it was way too early to be awake, let alone be screaming?

He heard the muffled coddles of his parents, their voices laden with sleep as they attempted to soothe the loose cannon that was Lily Potter. This unfortunately hadn't been the first outburst over the certain topic, and James had a feeling that it wouldn't be the last; however, he could thank Merlin that he wouldn't be around after this morning to hear them. That didn't mean, though, that he was in any way happy that Lily had woken him up before he was supposed to get up. The day hadn't even officially started, and she was already ruining it.

His parents eventually subdued Lily, he guessed, because the voices got quieter until he couldn't hear them at all. Unfortunately for James, he was now awake, and incredibly grumpy that his sister had started his morning off the wrong way. He tossed and turned for what felt like hours (it was probably minutes, the eleven-year-old could be quite the dramatic) but try as he might, there was no getting back to sleep.

It was under an hour later when his mother carefully came in to his room and gently nudged him. "James, dear, it's time to get up. Don't want to be late for your first day, do you?" Her question was met with an incoherent grunt as James thrashed and pulled the blankets over his head, trying to hide. "Come on honey, we've got to get to the station! I've made your favorite breakfast, get up so we can get ready to go." His mother knew how to tempt him, but James was too sullen from being so rudely woken up that morning to care. He grunted again, curling up into the fetal position. That seemed to be it for nice mum. "James Sirius Potter, get your happy rear out of that bed, this instant." The stern tone that he knew all too well came out, and grudgingly, James surfaced from his comforter, squinting at the light that streamed through his window.

If there was one thing James knew, it was to never cross his mother. Her temper was unmatched, and she was scary when she was angry.

She seemed happy enough that he had followed her directions, though, and the smile instantly came back to her face. "Glad to see you've joined the living. Hurry up and get dressed, we have to leave in an hour." The tall, red-haired woman made her way out of the room then, but paused in the doorway. "Oh, and James? You may want to run a brush through your hair." His mother gave a small chuckle and exited, and James took that opportunity to wipe the sleep from his eyes and process what she had just said.

Within a few moments he realized why she had mentioned his hair. As he saw in his full-length mirror, it was sticking up at a bunch of odd angles, and there was a flat part from where he had slept on most of the night. He sighed, grabbing the brush off his nightstand and quickly raking through his hair. Even when he was done it was still a little messy, but that was as good as it was going to get. Quickly then James threw on clothes, his stomach growling and causing him to rush through the preparations of getting ready for the day. In a rush he made his way down the stairs, following the amazing smell that could only be coming from the kitchen.

When the table came in to view, James could feel his mouth watering. Stacks of blueberry pancakes littered the table, along with eggs and bacon and fresh juice. He noticed that Albus was already at the table, but his little sister was no where to be seen. _Likely pouting in her room,_ he thought to himself. But it didn't really matter. James sat down and had no issue digging in to the wonderful meal his mother had prepared for him.

At some point Lily had grudgingly joined the table, completing the family. James paid little mind to her sour attitude though. He had gotten over his anger with her, and was left with satisfaction from the breakfast and anticipation of the day to come. His first day at Hogwarts was going to be magical – in every way it possibly could be.

The Potters loaded up in the family car not long after that. Since Lily was the smallest, she was wedged between the two brothers in the backseat, still sulking and looking like she was on the verge of tears. Albus was apathetic, reading a book that was about something illegal – James didn't bother to find out any more information, as he wasn't much of the reading type. He was too busy grinning like a fool as they drove to Kings Cross station, wishing that the car could just fly away and get there faster.

Of course, he knew that was illegal. He recalled one particular bedtime story his father got in trouble for telling about some kind of car that was wired to fly. It didn't end well.

The drive seemed to take forever. James was out the door before the car was even put in park, which earned him a swift scolding from his father. He wasn't fazed, though. James was too busy staring in awe at the train station. It seemed so…simple, with muggles walking in and out. But James knew it was more than that. It was one step closer to his destination, the school he had waited eleven years for.

His father had pulled his trunk out and his mother had found a trolley. Lily planted herself on top of his trunk, hoping that it would be enough to keep the rest of the family from continuing on. Unfortunately for the youngest Potter, their father easily maneuvered both she and the trunk onto the trolley, effectively shutting down her attempt to protest. James would have been mad at the fact that she was wasting time, but he knew it was only because she was upset he was leaving.

Their relationship was actually a very good one – that morning wasn't a good example, but he and his sister were quite close. He let her get away with a lot of things that would have angered him, had it been anyone else. Like that one time, he woke up with a bunch of makeup on his face. If it hadn't been Lily, he would have been furious and on a vengeful path. But when he looked into his sweet sister's face, he didn't have it in his heart to be angry. He knew she was upset because he wouldn't be around to play with any more. He had tried to ease her sadness by reminding her that she had Albus, but Lily wasn't satisfied. Albus wasn't interested in playing dress-up with Lily.

As the Potter family walked into the train station, it was certainly a sight to see. There was James, with a bounce in his step and a dazzling smile on his face. Then there was Albus, with his nose so far in the book that he was constantly tripping over his own two feet. And then Lily, seated cross-legged on the trunk, her arms folded as she glared straight ahead, being pushed on the trolley by their father, the one and only Harry Potter. James was well aware that his father was a sort of celebrity in the Wizarding World; it was something they had discussed early on, seeing as there were always pictures being taken when they ventured out into Diagon Alley or Hogsmeade. James had, of course, questioned it. So they had explained. Well, as much as they felt they should, given his age.

What Harry and Ginny Potter hadn't realized was how precocious and conniving their eldest son really was. When James suspected they were holding out on him, he strategically planned a way to sneak off on one of their trips to Diagon Alley and go read up on dear old dad. A few books and some old Daily Prophets later, and James had the answers he wanted. He also had two furious parents and two weeks' worth of chores, but it was worth it.

His thoughts were quickly disrupted as it came in to view. The pillar, the monumental step that would put him on the fateful platform to take him off to his dream school, was right there, in front of them. Oh, he had heard stories about what it looked like, but seeing the unnaturally plain wall that sat between the signs marking platforms 9 and 10 seemed like a dream. A dream, he mused sadly, that was still just out of reach. They were waiting for the Longbottoms, before crossing through the platform. And that family, of course, wasn't there yet.

The Longbottoms were very close family friends of the Potters. They were kind of like extended family. James saw them almost as much as he saw his cousins, but he wasn't related to them. And that was nice, seeing as he felt like he was related to a lot of people. He was quite glad to have friends who weren't family members.

Zander was a year older than him. They got along well, seeing as they both loved Quidditch and enjoyed playing around on brooms together in the backyard. When they would have family matches at the Potters', James always made an attempt to make sure they were on the same team. Zander was an excellent chaser, and the two could make incredible passes. They got each other on the field well. It was extremely upsetting for James when he found out the older boy had been sorted into Slytherin; while James could see why, he knew his own heart bled crimson and gold, and it would inevitably mean they couldn't play together on their house teams. Even still, he wrote to Zander a few times, mostly to ask about how Hogwarts was. And they saw each other on the breaks, too.

Evie was Zander's younger sister. She was James's age, and in every way, shape, and form his match in deviousness and mischief. The two were practically inseparable since the moment they met. It was just an ordinary day if they wrestled in the mud, or came home drenched from head to toe from some wacky adventure. Evie was very much a tomboy and easily kept up with the boys, and James didn't hesitate to pull out all the stops when it came to healthy competition and pranks. His personal signature was putting toads in her bed. And that often earned him some brightly coloured hair, or clothes. Or both.

Professor Longbottom's lanky figure came in to view first. It was then he saw their mum, with her long blond hair flowing behind her. Zander and Evie's mum was a bit odd, and he supposed that was where Evie got it from. She was a nice woman who liked to bake treats any time he visited though, so he could put up with the strange comments.

He spotted Zander then, partially hidden behind their parents. Zander had golden, sandy hair that always seemed to look so perfect. James couldn't deny that he was jealous. Even at twelve, Zander was suave and well put together.

James didn't, however, see his little blond friend. Just as he noticed that Evie was oddly absent from the family, he felt a thump on the back of his head. Of course.

He turned, a fake glare on his features, as he was met with the bright face of Evie Longbottom, looking too innocent to be true. James didn't have a good poker face though, and his composure fell after a few moments as he laughed. "Figures you'd sneak up on me."

"You should know better than to let your guard down, Potter." The blond challenged back, her light eyes twinkling. James simply rolled his eyes, noticing how Lily had seemed to perk up a bit since the arrival of the family. Lily and Evie had a sort of bond that James didn't get. Then again, he imagined it had something to do with the fact that Lily only had two older brothers, and Evie was kind of like an older sister. Kind of. She wasn't really girly, but she was a girl, so he guessed that counted. And Lily brought out the more girly side of Evie, so it kind of worked. They got along well, and Lily looked up to Evie.

Evie didn't miss a beat, either. "Hey Lils!" she greeted fondly, moving to the youngest Potter. Evie was also really good at reading people, and he figured she noticed that Lily was not in a good mood.

"Hi Ev," the younger girl replied rather dully, her eyes downcast. Evie's brows furrowed as she nudged the redhead, attempting to bump her out of the funk she was in.

"Hey. Don't be sad. I'll write to you all the time, and I'll send you a bunch of sweets!" Evie prodded, trying to get her to cheer. When she didn't immediately get a reaction, she continued, a smirk growing on her face. "And I'll make sure to take a lot of embarrassing photos of James so you have plenty of blackmail. You should send me that lipstick you used on him. What was the shade, Luscious Raspberry?"

That seemed to do the trick. Lily's face cracked a grin. "Scrumptious Strawberry, actually," she replied, feeling a little better. Of course, James heard the whole exchange, and was now sporting a glare of his own.

"You. Wouldn't. Dare." His voice was eerily low as his eyes darted back and forth between his friend and his sister, mortified that he was hearing them plot his demise.

"Of course not, Jaimie," Lily replied coyly, winking at Evie.

"We would never, _Jaimie,_ " Evie chimed in, mocking the nickname that she knew he loathed. He merely tolerated it when Lily said it.

James glared at both of them, his eyes narrowing. "You're on, _Evelyn,_ " he countered, using her full name which he knew she didn't like. He then made a lunge for the blond, who expertly dodged him, as if she had known the move was coming so far in advance. She was always a step ahead of him, and it unnerved him to no end. She knew what he was going to do before he even did. And somehow in the midst of guessing his movements she also managed to sneak in another thump to the back of his head, before running away.

He didn't have a chance to make a counter-attack, because as soon as they started to all move, the parents quickly stepped in. "Not so fast," the voice of his father interrupted, grabbing both he and Lily. Professor Longbottom stepped in and quickly grabbed Evie, catching her around the waist as she struggled.

"Goodness, can we be civil for five minutes? We're in public, for Merlin's sake," his mother chimed in, frustrated that they were causing a scene in a muggle location. James simply rolled his eyes, not daring to say anything else on the matter. That didn't mean, however, that he didn't meet eyes with Evie and give her a look that said 'this clearly isn't over.' She smiled innocently back at him, the dazzling smile indicating that she was already planning her next move. It would have irritated him, but that was the way James liked it. The world was right if he and Evie were getting in to trouble and coming up with crazy schemes.

"Well, I think it's time to go through, yeah?" his father asked, clearly ready to get out of the muggle part of King's Cross before they caused a bigger scene.

"Percy and Bill should already be over there. I think Ron and Hermione are as well," his mother piped up, grabbing Lily's hand to keep her from stirring up trouble. This information made James perk up.

"Uncle Ron and Aunt Hermione are here?" While James had many aunts and uncles, he was definitely closest to Ron and Hermione – probably because they were his father's best friends from school. He loved his aunt Hermione especially. She understood his intellectual side. While James certainly didn't put on an academic face to the world, he could be quite the introvert when he wanted to be. If he had a good book and a cup of tea, he was all set for a quiet night in. In the Potter household, that concept was often lost. Aunt Hermione though, she got it.

"They wanted to see their nephew off to his first year of Hogwarts," Harry replied, rubbing his son's messy head affectionately.

"Ugh dad," James wriggled out of his father's grip, clearly not amused by his father. Harry laughed it off though, as they all turned to face the barrier.

"Luna, Neville, care to do the honors?" Harry asked, addressing the other two adults. Luna gave a simple nod, before ushering Zander to go first through the barrier, following him. Neville then rested his hands on Evie's shoulders.

"Ready, princess?" he asked his daughter fondly, looking down at the little girl.

Evie gave a confident nod. "Yes, daddy," she replied, before the pair walked through the barrier, pushing her trolley. James watched as his best friend disappeared through the barrier, knowing that it was now his turn. His father turned and looked at him expectantly.

"Well? Now or never," Harry offered a hand with James's trolley, nodding to his son. James gave a glance to his mother, brother, and sister, before nodding at his dad, pushing the cart forward. He was quickly moving to the wall, and a spark of fear lit in his stomach as he worried for a brief moment that they were going to crash. His father, though, pushed on for James, and they hit the wall that never came. It was an odd feeling, only lasting a few seconds, before they were out on the other side.

The sight that greeted him was amazing, and better than he could have imagined. The colors were rich, saturated, and the noise was loud and incredible. There were so many people, happy people, greeting and mingling and saying goodbyes. It was overwhelming. James loved it.

The goodbyes were tearful for most of the parents present. His mother got all weepy and gushy and it made him flush in embarrassment. As James attempted to pry his mother off of him, his father stepped in. Harry Potter was much calmer than his wife, and instead opted on a small but meaningful hug and a nod of approval to his eldest son.

James took a moment then to bid farewell to his siblings. Albus only gave him a reserved handshake before returning to his book, but Lily in a flourish attached herself to James's waist. "Write me every day Jaimie, okay?" The request wasn't demanding, but rather bittersweet as Lily had apparently come to terms with her older brother leaving her.

In return James laughed softly, returning her hug. "Of course Lils. Hogwarts is only seven years. Family is forever."That seemed to do the trick as she grinned up at her big brother, reluctantly letting him go. James knew himself enough to know that he wouldn't be able to keep up with writing every day, but he would do his best to make sure that he wrote often. It was a little known fact that James had a massive soft spot for his only sister, and he didn't really care what other people thought about that.

After Zander and Evie parted from their mother, the three of them, trunks in tow, made their way to the infamous train. Zander didn't take long to find his other second-year friends, leaving the pair to go find the others they had agreed to meet up with. It wasn't long before their compartment on the train was full of activity and excitement.

As James looked at his collection of friends, old and new, he smiled quietly to himself. He was assuredly about to have the best seven years of his life.


End file.
